Linky's Fics

The Worst of Me

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Geryon always reminded Minato of the sins that weighed upon his shoulders. Unable to forget what happened on that fateful day when Suzuya had his life and his bright future snatched away from him, when the wrong choice was made.

Minato would do all he could to repress the seething self hatred and guilt he had. To push it away to the darkest corners of his mind. He had to. Otherwise the illusion of a man who could function and teach the next generation would crumble away.

Even then it always lingered in the back of his mind. The sense of responsibility over Suzuya’s life and the lives of the rest of his classmates would truly never leave him.

That’s when Geryon stepped foot into the academy’s halls once again. The moment Minato laid eyes upon him, it ignited and stoked the flames of what happened a decade ago in full force. All of his attempts at holding back those thoughts broke instantly. The dam was destroyed beyond repair. And he drowned in the hatred he harbored for himself as it consumed his lungs.

He’d feign loyalty out of necessity and a sense of duty. A duty to keep his students and the graduate under his watch as far away from all of this as possible. They must never come into contact with Geryon. And hopefully never have to fight him.

Minato knew better than anyone else what that man was capable of. The damage he could inflict, and the horrors he could conjure within an instant.

If he made that same mistake again, Minato would never forgive himself for it.

All the while Geryon taunted him with that cube in his hand. Idly playing with it as the guilt of being the only survivor of that incident struck through Minato’s heart. Trembling at the sight of that damned golden cube shimmering underneath the lights of the room.

Alongside all of this Minato let Geryon treat him as his own personal toy. Exchanging heated kisses, touches of skin, and even more than that when his dolls were off the premises. Leaving the two of them completely alone.

The part that made Minato sick to his stomach, well sicker than he already was— is that some twisted part of his mind enjoyed the attention, and even craved it.

The times of when they fooled around together in these same walls also lingered in the recesses of his mind. He had been so lonely these past ten years. And Geryon had to have sensed that.

Plus Geryon knew how to feed the part of Minato that had always craved positive attention more than anything else. How much Minato longed to be praised. To know that all of the work he’d done in the art of alchemy was worthwhile. That he was worth being around, and desirable as well.

And Geryon knew how to push all of those buttons just right to his advantage.

He’d indulge that part of Minato. The part of him he desperately tried to hide from others over the years. It was something he was never proud of. But Minato still couldn’t deny it was a part of him nonetheless.

When he first joined the academy as a new teacher Geryon noticed that about him immediately. Sniffing it out, like how an animal begins the process to find and hunt its prey.

That was when Minato’s fate was sealed.

Geryon would gradually indulge and encourage this aspect of Minato over the years. And through that he made Minato putty in his hands back then. And he continued to do the same now.

The fact Geryon’s old tricks still worked on Minato made him feel a level of shame and loathing that felt as if a thousand blades had struck through him whenever their lips would press against each other. It was as if he had never grown as a person throughout all this time…

Minato felt like a corpse as he continued to play house with Geryon and the sisters. Completely drained of his soul, and forced to be on autopilot as he carried out the orders that were given to him.

If he was a stronger man, he would have found a way to destroy Geryon’s operations from the inside by now. And carry out that plan without fear. But instead Minato just followed Geryon’s whims without question. All in a desperate, and most likely futile, attempt to protect the ones he cared about.

Granted he did find a way to help the others from the inside with Spanner and his driver. But ever since then that willpower had been nowhere to be found. It was back to business as usual now.

Minato was convinced the idea of that plan coming to him, and it also being successful, was nothing but a fluke. He could have easily died back there when Spanner struck him across the chest. Leaving a scar in its wake.

It now decorated his skin— a permanent reminder of the path he had chosen.

He’d continue to do as Geryon asked. All while on his knees and proclaiming his loyalty to his former teacher. Or begging for his forgiveness whenever he lost to his former students. Even if the act of doing so felt like he was eating glass and nails as each and every word left his lips.

In trying to prevent history repeating itself and to stop a cycle from forming, he only somehow made things more painful for those he held dear.

Why was he like this? What was wrong with him? How many mistakes would he continue to make?

As these weeks dragged on Minato was only reminded of the worst parts of himself as Geryon brought them back to the surface. To remind him of all his faults, what made him horrible. Why was he destined to have made such a terrible mistake back then, and only continue to make new mistakes now if he didn’t follow Geryon’s every command.

And even then, that didn’t free Minato from being reminded of other missteps he had made while following orders.

It was all definitely on purpose. Only to make things even more of a living hell for him.

And the worst part of it all? It worked.

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